Common Law Marriage

A Legal Institution for Cohabitation

Goran Lind

Provides an in-depth history on the origins and historical legal aspects of common law marriage, from Free Roman Marriages to Canon Law concubine laws

Analyzes the legal challenges between the decreased marriage rates versus the increased rates of cohabitation, and puts it in a historical, comparative, and sociological perspective

Analyzes the conflicts between laws when one state attempts to determine or recognize a common law marriage from another state

Presents a solidified argument from both sides of the debate, between those "for" and "against" common law marriage with evidence concerning cultural reasons, morality issues, and the lack of protection against personal integrity

Provides a current perspective on the complexities surrounding common law marriage, by presenting 2,000 American cases to determine the legal requirements and facts surrounding what could be established as a common law marriage

Common Law Marriage

A Legal Institution for Cohabitation

Goran Lind

Description

The extraordinary recent increase in rates of cohabitation and non-marital birth presents a major challenge to traditional family law principles, and the legal rules governing cohabitation are thus among the most hotly contested areas of family law and policy today. In many nations, courts, legislatures, and law-reform bodies are "reinventing" common law marriage, seemingly without any sense of its history, doctrinal development, or limitations.

The current law surrounding common law marriage is extremely complex. Professor Göran Lind has undertaken the demanding task of writing the most well-researched text on this topic to date. Separated into three Parts, Common Law Marriage covers the origins of the doctrine, its legal aspects in modern America, and
the future of cohabitation law across the globe and in the 11 American jurisdictions that currently recognize common law marriage. It provides a cultural and historical history of the subject, from Ancient Roman Law to Medieval Canon Law, and analyzes over 2,000 American cases which have utilized the doctrine.

This timely book is an excellent resource for scholars, legislators, and policymakers who are interested in the complex legalities of common law marriage.

Common Law Marriage

A Legal Institution for Cohabitation

Goran Lind

Author Information

Göran Lind is an Associate Professor of law at the University of Uppsala in Sweden, where he previously earned his Bachelor of Laws and Doctorate of Laws. He is the general manager of the JURA Law Institute, which educates judges and attorneys on the entire field of law. Professor Lind has lectured extensively on family law, inheritance law, international private law, and comparative law, and has published multiple books and articles on these topics. Professor Lind has been elected by the students of the University of Uppsala as the best teacher of the faculty of law.

Common Law Marriage

A Legal Institution for Cohabitation

Goran Lind

Reviews and Awards

"This is the definitive work on U.S. common law marriage. Scholars of family law across the US will be very glad Professor Lind undertook this project. Professor Lind's book provides very helpful information about how common law marriage developed. His chapters on informal marriage under Roman and Canon law, provide a helpful survey of the legal historical background out of which common law marriage emerged."
J. Thomas Oldham, University of Houston Law Center

"Professor Lind's work is extremely timely and his research is extremely thorough. He offers both a contemporary and an historical perspective and his analysis is careful and thoughtful. It provides the information that policymakers and scholars need, and does so in a thorough and unbiased manner. I expect that this book will have a significant impact on the development of the law governing cohabitation."
Marsha Garrison, Brooklyn Law School